please answer the case's questions , ‘Quality’ is more important than length

Sample Case Studies for Practice

CASE 01—Anne Mulcahy at Xerox

Anne Mulcahy is the ultimate loyal employee. She joined Xerox when she was 23 years old. She spent her first 16 years in sales, then eight years in an assortment of management assignments—director of human resources, head of the company’s fledging desktop computer business, and chief of staff to Xerox’s CEO. She never aspired to run Xerox, nor was she groomed to be the boss. So she was as surprised as anyone when Xerox’s board chose her as CEO in August 2001. She accepted the job

with mixed feelings: The company was in horrible financial shape. It had $17.1 billion in debt and only $154 million in cash. It was about to begin seven straight quarters of losses. The company had been slow to move from analog to digital copying and from black and white to color. Japanese competitors like Canon and Ricoh had taken a large chunk of its market share in copying machines. Prior executives had diversified the company into financial services and never leveraged Xerox’s expertise in personal computers. Xerox’s stock price had dropped from nearly $64 in 2000 to $4.43. But Mulcahy felt a deep loyalty to the company. She felt an obligation to do everything in her power to save Xerox. Duty and loyalty compelled her to take a job that nobody else really wanted, despite the fact that she had zero preparation.

To say Mulcahy wasn’t groomed for the CEO position is a true understatement. For instance, she didn’t know financial analysis. She had no MBA and her undergraduate degree was in English/journalism. So she asked the company’s director of corporate finance to give her a cram course in Balance Sheet 101. He helped her to understand debt structure, inventory trends, and the impact of taxes and currency rates. This allowed her to see what would generate cash and how each of her decisions would affect the balance sheet. Mulcahy says now that her lack of training had its advantages. She had no preconceived notions, no time to develop bad habits. Mulcahy and her executive team faced a difficult task from the beginning. Xerox is an old fashioned company and people resisted change. The average tenure of a Xerox employee is 14 years, double the overall corporate average. Although everyone knew the company was in trouble, there wasn’t a lot of willingness to challenge the conventional wisdom. She appealed to employees with missionary zeal, in videos and in person to “save each dollar as if it were your own.” She rewarded those who stuck it out not only by refusing to abolish raises but with symbolic gestures as well; in 2002, for instance, she gave all employees their birthdays off. The gentle pressure was vintage Mulcahy: Work hard, measure the results, tell the truth, and be brutally honest.

After less than three years as CEO, Mulcahy has made startling progress in turning Xerox around. Employees appreciated her truthful and straightforward style. They also liked the fact that she was willing to work shoulder to shoulder with subordinates. Because she was working so hard, people felt obligated to work harder too. But Mulcahy is no softie. She’s smart, energetic, tough but compassionate. And she showed the ability to make hard decisions. For instance, she slashed costs in part by cutting Xerox’s workforce by 30 percent and she shut down the desktop division. She oversaw the streamlining of production, new investment in research and development, and restructured the sales force so vague lines of authority became clear. She met with bankers and customers. Most importantly, she traveled. She galvanized “the troops” by visiting Xerox offices—sometimes hitting three cities a day—and inspiring employees. While many people were concerned that the company was headed for bankruptcy, she wouldn’t consider that an option. By summer of 2003, Xerox had had four straight quarters of operating profits. The company’s stock was up to $11 a share. And while Xerox’s future was still far from secure, at least it was beginning to look like the company would have a future.

Source: B. Morris, “The Accidental CEO,” Fortune, June 23, 2003, pp. 58-66

Questions:

1. How did Anne create trust with employees after becoming CEO?

2. What leadership qualities do you think helped Anne affect the turnaround at Xerox?

CASE 02:

Pat Talley stood and watched, with grudging admiration, as Carmelita Suarez worked the room. Sharp, charming, and armed with a personality that left an indelible memory, Carmelita at one moment had the ear of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Chris Blount and the next could be observed smiling and studying something on her electronic notebook with the executive assistant of a major board member.

“She’s amazing,” Kent Schlain whispered to Pat as he gave him a cocktail. “I like to observe and learn. She’s a real education in office politics.” “We’re not in politics,” Pat answered somewhat defensively. “We’re in IT.”

“Come on, Pat.” Kent teased. “Tell me she doesn’t worry you. Everyone knows she’s your main competition for the Chief Information Officer (CIO) job.” Pat smirked, took a sip from the scotch and water, and said sarcastically, “I’m worried. Satisfied?”

Walking away from Kent’s mischievous goading, Pat’s usual confidence suffered a fleeting twinge of fear. No, I’m OK. I’m OK, he thought. I have more expertise than anyone, including Carmelita, and I’m not afraid to lay down the law to get projects completed.

After weeks of speculation, interviews, on-site visits by top execs, and endless waiting, a decision on the new CIO was to be made and announced by CEO Blount this week during the annual meeting. Although Mansfield, Inc. boasted an extraordinarily talented IT group, company insiders and industry watchers agreed that the decision would come down to a choice between Carmelita Suarez and Pat Talley.

To this point, Pat carried the confidence of a sterling 20-year record with Mansfield. Technically gifted, he was one of the team members that designed and implemented the company’s original IT system and had been a major player throughout the years in guiding its growth and expansion. Pat built a reputation as a guy who relentlessly analysed needs and then charged ahead until the job was completed – usually under budget. His special strength lay in the twin areas of electronic security and risk management.

Pat considered technical expertise and competence to be the qualifications for the position as CIO, as he explained during a recent interview with executives and board members. “Our work and reputation should be the only considerations,” Pat emphasized. “My job is not to schmooze and glad hand. I’m not running for public office. I’m running an IT division.”

Over the years, Pat maintained strictly defined areas of work and friendship and, in fact, could count on one hand the number of casual, work-related friendships he had developed over 20 years. He was proud of his ability to compartmentalize these areas so that personal relationships had no bearing on management decisions. He considered this an important part of his reputation as a fair but tough leader. He demanded excellence and could be unforgiving in his attitude toward those with less technology interest or expertise.

The word politics was odious to Pat Talley, and he considered office politics as a waste of time. However, at company gatherings such as this, he also carried a slight chip on his shoulder, aware that despite his importance to the company, he was only on the periphery of this group – not excluded, but not really included either. The significance of this particular meeting – and now watching Suarez put on a clinic in office politics – only increased those feelings for Pat, making him defensive and uncharacteristically concerned about his future.

Could office politics really be the deciding factor, he suddenly wondered. Carmelita knows her stuff. She does her research and stays on top of the latest trends and products in IT. She can handle any situation, particularly those sticky people problems that arise within teams or with suppliers. Pat smiled ruefully. Heck, I’ve even brought her in a time or two.

Now, as he stood and observed the activity in the room, he watched as his rival moved effortlessly among individuals and various groups. I feel like I’m watching “Survivor.” Does the guy who trusts his own abilities win, or is it the one who builds coalitions and alliances? He shook his head as if to shake off the imagery. That was stupid. This is not a reality television show. This is corporate America. Do your job. I’ve built my reputation on that, and I’ll stand by that.

His attention snapped back as Carmelita handed him a fresh scotch and water. “You could use a fresh one,” she said, smiling and pointing to his empty glass. “I guess tomorrow’s the big day and I wanted to come by and wish you well. These are exciting days for the company and for IT, and whichever way it goes tomorrow I look forward to working together. Cheers.” “Same here,” he answered. Their glasses clinked together in a toast. Dang, she’s good, Pat thought.

1. Would you consider Pat a relations-oriented or a task-oriented leader? Explain?

2. What types of power does Pat have and what type of power is he mostly exercising? Discuss